Top 3 Gold IRA Companies

A gold IRA (individual retirement account) is a tax-advantaged retirement account and an investment vehicle. There are many benefits of having a gold IRA and we will go over the best gold IRA companies so you can decide which company is the best for you.

Our process for rating these companies are customer reviews, fees, price of gold, and customer service experience.

At a Glance Rating:

Top 3 Gold IRA Comparison Chart

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Best Gold IRA Companies Reviews

There are many precious metals companies out there to invest with, so to narrow down your search a little bit, here are the top 5 best gold IRA companies:

Augusta Precious Metals

Star Rating

Augusta Precious Metals is the winner of our top spot because it has the best record with customers (zero complaints with the BBB and BCA since the company opened) and they offer the most transparent, most competitive pricing in the industry (includes free transit insurance and shipping on qualified orders).

Augusta is a trusted online gold IRA dealer that has a lot of experience in the industry. For example, the company is trusted by football star Joe Montana, whose personal advisors independently identified Augusta as the best gold IRA company in the U.S. for him (he is now not only a customer but an “ambassador”). Their special tailored web conference is another reason we chose them as our top choice: it was designed by their on-staff Harvard-trained economist to help people understand the economy and gold and silver. As an online-only dealer, they are able to keep their overhead costs low and can pass the savings on to you. They pay as many as 10-years’ worth of fees for qualified customers.

Augusta offers a range of gold and silver products for your precious metal IRA. To make the account-opening process even easier, Augusta pre-selects the most common gold and silver products and offers them at very competitive prices. Augusta also maintains a partnership with the Royal Canadian Mint, which enables the company to introduce Americans to purer coins at lower prices than those available at other mints.

Augusta Precious Metals was founded with the goal of making investments in gold and silver as easy as possible for the average person. Personally assigned customer success agents assist you every step of the way with the account-opening process and answer all of your questions. And once your account is open, you can easily monitor it from the intuitive and user-friendly dashboard available through your IRA custodian.

Pros:

• Most transparent, most competitive pricing in the industry
• Complete lack of complaints at the BBB (Better Business Bureau) and BCA (Business Consumer Alliance
• Thousands of 5-star reviews at the most popular consumer ratings sites
• Voted the most trusted gold IRA company in the U.S.
• Endorsed by hall of fame quarterback Joe Montana – an actual Augusta customer (found for him by his personal advisors)
• Free one-on-one educational web conference designed and led by Augusta’s on-staff Harvard-trained economist
• Wide range of popular products

Cons:

• No online orders
• Mostly limited to gold and silver (they do offer platinum and palladium if asked for)

American Hartford Gold Group

Star Rating

The company offers both immediate and scheduled deliveries for all its products with no additional charges. Also, the company provides accessible storage facilities to all its clients. The main office of this company is located in Los Angeles.

The company is known for providing quality customer support and is available on phone and online chat options. Also, you can send them emails or letters if you wish to contact them using these traditional methods of communication.

The company currently sell American Gold and Silver Eagles, American Buffalo 1 oz gold coins, Canadian Maple Leaf 1 oz gold coins, Australian Kangaroo 1 oz gold coins, Britannia 1 oz gold coins, Chinese Panda 1 oz gold coins, Engelhard 1 oz silver bars, Johnson Matthey 1 oz silver bars and many other products.

Pros:

• The company has a BBB rating of A+.
• It offers quality customer support services.
• You can easily track your package once it has been shipped.
• It provides accessible storage facilities for all buyers.

Cons:

• It offers only a few payment methods.

Goldco

Star Rating

Goldco is one of the largest precious metals dealers in the United States. They offer a range of choices for your IRA account. They offer services not just for gold, but also for  silver, and we recently found out they expanded into cryptocurrency.

They have been in business since 1975, so they are a well-established company with a lot of experience.

Pros:

• Convenient option to buy gold and other precious metals
• Experienced company; Professional IRA experts ready to help
• Has options for silver, platinum, and palladium as well and even cryptocurrencies
• Smooth 401k & gold ira rollovers

Cons:

• Doesn’t accept credit or debit cards

Why You Should Invest in a Gold IRA Company?

1. This is the big one. By investing in a gold IRA, you are taking steps to protect your retirement savings. Due to the nature of gold, it is often not affected by inflation or market loss in the same way other investments are. Gold helps you diversify, so you are safeguarded at some level against those things. Since gold tends to hold its value, you can rest easy.
2. The IRS allows you to contribute up to $6,000 per year into your IRA ($7,000 if you’re 50 or older). More significantly, there is no limit on the amount of money you can roll over into an IRA – including a gold IRA.
3. Gold is a physical item, so a lot of investors believe it’s safer than investments on paper or in computers. You can store it in a secure place that is set up especially to protect your investment. This not only provides an extra measure of confidence, but it’s fun to say you own gold—and you can pass it on to your family. Later, if you want to and as long as you follow IRS rules, you can even take possession of the gold yourself.

Benefits of a Gold IRA Company

There are many benefits that come with a gold IRA. These include, but are not limited to:

The Rising Price of Gold

Because gold is viewed by many as a safe-haven asset and store of value, many people are taking advantage of it and using it as an investment opportunity. If you are looking to make wise investments with your money for retirement, then you should seriously consider a gold IRA if you don’t already have one.

Many Precious metals companies offer gold IRAs, so you will want to do your research before committing to one. Make sure the company is trusted, has a good reputation, and offers a fair price when buying the gold back from you. You also want to make sure that the company you choose stores your gold at an IRS-approved depository. This will ensure your IRA is safe and sound.

Long-term Safeguard and Protection of Your Money

As you probably know, the value of paper money is constantly diminishing. This is because more and more of it is continually being circulated throughout the economy. The value of gold, on the other hand, tends to rise over time and it cannot just be created from thin air. In fact, many financial advisors are encouraging their clients to invest in gold as a safeguard for their future.

This is why you should seriously consider opening up an IRA with a gold account today. Even if the amount you put in is small, the benefits will still be there for you in the future and you also have time on your side.

Diversification

If you are investing in gold, consider also purchasing some mining stocks. Owning both gives you extra protection because if one investment falters the other might pick up the slack. However, both of these investments have the same risk factor: they can be wiped out completely by a massive depression.

If you’re looking for something that has a little more safety, go with treasury bonds or government treasury bills. These are low-risk choices that tend to hold their value even during a depression.

Tax Benefits

Any gains you make from your gold IRA are either tax-deferred or tax-free, depending on the specific type of IRA (Traditional, Roth, etc.).

Be sure to follow all the rules of your IRA (just like any other IRA). Your gold provider will introduce you to a gold IRA custodian, who by law must administer your precious metals account to help you follow the rules.

Things to Be Aware of Before Opening a Gold IRA

If you want to start investing in gold, there are a few things you should be aware of before you make a decision.

Fees and Expenses

Understand what you are actually paying for with your gold IRA. Unnecessarily expensive fees can add up and eat into your profits if you’re not careful. The charges should be competitive in the industry. The lower the expenses, the more you will actually save.

Just like any sort of investment, there are risks involved. But investing in gold for your IRA is a solid long-term solution that has proven it’s worth time and time again.

No Yield, No Dividends, No Interest

Gold does not earn any sort of yield or interest. However, it does offer the potential for capital appreciation. Gold is considered a long-term investment that has the potential to grow your savings, but its greatest value is in the fact that it holds value because it’s a physical asset.

Fraud and Theft

Investors often wonder about the potential for fraud and theft with valuable products like precious metals. You can minimize any risk of this by only dealing with reputable dealers and always keeping track of your receipts and records. You never know when you’ll need them!

With a gold IRA, you are required to store your metals in a secure depository, and we believe those places are very safe. They are designed to eliminate theft and fraud.

Buyer’s Guide to Investing in a Gold IRA

One unique investment opportunity that has been available for years is the ability to purchase gold, silver, or other precious metals through an IRA. This gives you the chance to protect your retirement investment portfolio against the ongoing financial turmoil around the world.

If you are interested in learning more about this option, this buyer’s guide is designed to give you the basics of what you need to know.

Speak with a Financial Advisor or Lawyer

Before you start researching the various opportunities available, you will need to find out if this is even allowed where you are and also which investment vehicles are okay. Some retirement accounts are set up through an employer and these may have more restrictions than other accounts.

You also need to speak with a financial advisor or lawyer before moving forward with any account to ensure that it is set up in accordance with the law and that you understand all of the relevant tax implications.

Review Current News for Fraud Alerts

As with any investment, you should make it a point to review news on a regular basis so you are aware of any potential fraud warnings. In the world of precious metals investing, this means that you stay alert to the activities of the Better Business Bureau and the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center.

The key is to be aware of potential warning signs so you do not become a victim of fraud.

Find a Custodial Company and Establish the IRA

The first step is to find a reputable gold ira custodial company where you can set up the IRA. The law only allows specific types of IRAs so you will need to find out which vehicle will work best for your situation.

Once you have chosen the company, they will provide you with all of the necessary paperwork to fill out and send back to them.

You will have to supply personal information such as your name, address, Social Security number, and some additional information about you and your income. The company will also ask for a list of assets that you currently have so they can calculate how much can go into precious metals IRAs.

Once you have established the IRA, you can then move onto the next step.

Establish and Fund the IRA

You can convert some or all of the money that is in another type of retirement account to a precious metals IRA. You can also start with a lump sum payment or contribute on a regular basis, such as monthly. Some companies may even allow you to do a combination of both.

Look into How the Investments Work. At this point, you should look into how your investment works so you can decide if it is right for your circumstances.

Invest in Precious Metals Via the IRA

At this point, you are ready to actually put money into the IRA. The process will be different depending on which company you are working with but they should all provide you with instruction at this point detailing what to do next.

Most of the time, this involves putting an order in for a specific amount of precious metals with a specific purity from a list of approved dealers. This is then stored in your retirement account and it is up to you to keep track of any changes in value each year.

5 Things to Look For When Choosing a Gold IRA Company

When looking for a gold IRA company, you will need to choose very carefully as this is your future retirement that is on the line.

Ratings

First, you should do some initial online research to see what companies are out there that offer this service. You can get information on a company’s reputation through consumer watchdog websites as well as search for feedback on their services through forums on the internet. While many sites offer this service, the most commonly used and trustworthy one is named the Better Business Bureau (BBB). You can use this site to get an idea of how others have felt about a company’s customer service experience.

IRA Fee Structure

The second thing to consider is how much you will have to pay for the service. Each company is different but they all usually charge a fee for setting up and maintaining your account. The most common ones are a yearly management fee as well as a transaction fee each time you buy or sell precious metals.

The fee you pay can really make a difference over time so make sure you choose a company that has low fees.

Efficiency & Delivery Time

The third thing to think about is how efficient the company is at doing what they do as well as how quickly they are able to get delivery to you of your precious metals.

Many of the big and reputable companies have a good record for being efficient and getting things to you in a timely manner.

In most cases, the metals will be delivered to you by armored truck service or they might arrange to have it picked up in person at a local branch. This depends on what you are more comfortable with.

Pushy Salesmen or Unfriendly Customer Support

The fourth thing to look for is how pushy the company’s salesmen are. If you go to a local coin shop to buy your precious metals, then this is something you are probably used to. Some of these companies have employees whose job it is to try to get you to buy more than you need. They do this because they are paid on commission so the more you buy, the more money they make.

Because you will be dealing with these people on a regular basis as you add to your IRA, you want to choose a company whose employees treat you nicely and are not overly pushy. Otherwise, you might find yourself having to deal with them multiple times which can get stressful.

Other Alternative Investment Options Available

If you are looking for something a little simpler, there are other alternative investments such as mutual funds that you might want to consider. These are managed by professional fund managers who do all of the work for you. They research and buy small portions of many different stocks and assets so that your money is spread out over many different types of investments which lower your risk overall.

Conclusion

Opening a gold IRA can seem like an overwhelming process for a first-time investor, but the most important thing is to get the information you need, ask a lot of questions and stay confident in your decision. Think about why you’re investing and consider what you hope to accomplish. Are you doing this to make money, or do you want some extra security? You should have a goal in mind before starting.

After you’ve decided what type of metals you’re interested in, the next step is looking into potential companies. There are many dealers out there, but not all of them will be reliable. We hope this article helps you get started, but you’ll still have much more homework to do. If you would like to skip directly to the company we chose as our top choice, Augusta Precious Metals, click here.